For 19-year-old Gael Gomez, the Mount Pleasant Sidewalk Astronomers is a group that has changed his life for the better in many ways.
“We bring down the sky and the universe to the sidewalk for everyone to enjoy,” said Gomez, who co-founded the group alongside his friend, Adam Green.
Seeing life through a telescope has always been a calling for Gomez.
The 19-year-old can often be spotted towing his homemade Newtonian-style lens around town, bringing smiles to the faces of neighbors who stop by to hang with the Sidewalk Astronomers whenever they congregate.
“It makes me feel joyful,” Gomez said, when asked about the response of the community to the group’s meetings, held semiregularly on the corner of Mt. Pleasant and Irving streets in Northwest D.C.
But Gomez may have to say goodbye to that joy — and to the group he helped form — if he can’t find a permanent path to remaining in the United States.
“It’s a tough situation,” he admitted.
How the US became Gomez’s home
At just 12 years old, Gomez and his mother moved to the U.S. from Venezuela on a temporary visa in 2019.
“My mother’s a scientist,” Gomez said. “She’s got a master’s in microbiology, and through an exchange program that she was able to get, we were able to come here.”
In 2021, Gomez — who was 16 at the time — discovered his love for outer space and astronomy. The pair applied for temporary protected status to remain in the U.S. permanently.
After four long years, he said it looked like everything was in order.
But then his protected status was revoked by the Trump administration on Nov. 7.
“We lose our protections, and we lose our legal status, or rather, our authorization to stay,” he said.
Gomez added that with recent tensions and escalations of war between the U.S. and Venezuela, it’s a frightening time to even consider the possibility of leaving.
“Returning to Venezuela is not an option. It’s just it’s not doable,” he told WTOP.
‘It’s just the best neighborhood’: Looking for a path forward
During an earlier interview with WTOP about the Sidewalk Astronomers, Gomez led us to a secret astrophotography art exhibit, located down a brick alleyway off Mount Pleasant Street.
In partnership with the D.C. art gallery Lost Origins, the exhibit showcases some of the incredible moments captured by the Sidewalk Astronomers on their adventures peering into outer space.
Eclipses, nebulas and even far-off galaxies are included in the gallery of photos taken by Gomez, Green and Bryan Vandrovec.
And this exhibit could hold part of the key to Gomez remaining in the US.
Through the Lost Origins gallery, and the National Capital Astronomers organization (who work with the Sidewalk Astronomers), anyone can buy mini prints of the same astrophotography photos displayed on the streets of Mt. Pleasant — to support Gomez and his mother.
All of the revenue goes toward costs associated with visas for Gomez and his mother, which, as of the publishing of this article, will cost the pair around $30,000.
These visas would allow them to remain in the U.S. as a student and scientist, respectively.
“I want Mount Pleasant to be the window to the universe from Washington, D.C.,” Gomez told WTOP. “It’s just the best neighborhood.”
Gomez said he and his mother are currently in limbo, waiting to see if they get approved for the visas. Should the pair get approved, they’ll have to raise the funds.
“The response has been overwhelmingly positive, to say the least,” Gomez reflected.
With support from his community, Gomez told WTOP they’ve already been able to raise a few thousand dollars through monetary donations and proceeds from the art gallery.
But there’s still quite a long way to go.
A teen dreams of ‘educating people on the wonders of the night sky’
“In my ideal world, I’m teaching astronomy in the future,” Gomez said, adding, he wants to become an educator and make astronomy his life.
Gomez said he never thought he’d ever be this close to realizing his dream. But the 19-year-old believes it could be possible, if he’s allowed to remain in the U.S. to forge a path in pursuing his passion.
“I’m educating people on the wonders of the night sky,” he said, beaming. “We as humans are very special, and we live in a very, very special planet. I just want to operate telescopes … and I want to be the sidewalk astronomer.”
In the Mount Pleasant community, which has a heavy Latin American immigrant population, Gomez and the Sidewalk Astronomers have become fixtures, fan-favorites and a constant presence of hope.
As he fights to remain in his home, the love he’s poured into the neighborhood is one you can see reflected back at him — in every face, every exchange, every friendly gaze looking up into the unknown.
To learn more about the Sidewalk Astronomers gallery in Mount Pleasant, head to Lost Origins’ website.
To purchase astrophotography prints in support of the Sidewalk Astronomers — and Gomez’s journey to remain in the U.S. — go to the gallery’s website. In addition to prints, the Lost Origins website is collecting general donations, without purchase of a print, to fund costs associated with visas for the Gomez family.
Nighttime footage in this episode was used courtesy of D.C. filmmaker Jason Garza. Be on the lookout for his documentary on Gael, “Second Sunrise,” to be released in 2026.
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